Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Rhetorical Appeals: "Same Love" (logos)

The logos portrayed in Same Love is subtle yet apparent throughout the entirety of the song. For beginners, the artist Macklemore, having a gay uncle, recognized the struggles of a gay couple in America and references the numbing of society as '"Man thats gay" gets dropped on the daily". One other reference, which is slightly more subtle, references the derogatory nature of the internet through the line "have you read the youtube comments lately?". Macklemore brings to light the slur of the word "gay" through it being "synonymous with the lesser" and how it can be truly taken personally.

Monday, March 3, 2014

Watch What Happens

Effect of Rhetoric Appeal:


Rhetoric is used in order to obtain some intended effect, whether it makes people think and join a cause or put them at odds against a cause, rhetoric appeal always yield effects. The performance on the Grammy's show last night was no different, this time around it rallied for equality.

Being the technology savvy generation, one doesn't have to wait a week or month to know the effect that Same Love's performance had. Social Media sites provide a medium for immediate response and reaction.
The average individual, celebrities and activists shared their opinions, praise and comments about the spectacle of the 34 marriages they witnessed during the 56th Grammys.

Below are a few responses from tweeps:
And:
But many appreciated and felt validated by Macklemore's statement:

These tweets were sampled from a post by Huffington Post and Today Entertainment and those were a few of the several thousand responses that poured out from twitter.

This shows that the performance captured the attention of the masses, enabling the ability to strengthen the supporters of the cause.

Sunday, March 2, 2014

Sam Cooke's Style



Sam Cooke’s songwriting and performance of “A Change is Gonna Come” is fitting for the Civil Rights movement, as it became an anthem of hope and ultimate triumph. Influenced by Bob Dylan’s “Blowin’ in the Wind”, Cooke strayed away from his usual pop-like tunes, and instead reverted back to gospel in performing this piece. One would think a protest song would incorporate shouting in order to portray strong emotions but Cooke was able to do so smoothly. So spiritually. Yet at the same time, the listener could feel the agony of “And I say brother help me please/ But he winds up knockin’ me” and the hope in “There were times when I thought I couldn’t last for long/ But now I think I’m able to carry on”; all through his voice. In addition to his amazing vocals, the instruments utilized in this piece strengthen all the emotions and the message within Cooke’s piece. In trying to instill hope in the listener, he mentions multiple instances where he faced trouble; and each time, the song reaches a crescendo by the end; sending a chilling vibe through the listener. Hence why this song was very empowering; not only in regards to Civil Rights issues but to any issue that triggers pain and sorrow to a soul.

Logos: A Change is Gonna Come



Although Sam Cooke’s “A Change is Gonna Come” features very little logical proof for encouraging one to bear his/her challenges, for better times are to come, the lyrics follow a timeline of events within his life. This timeline of events, however, encompasses a person who has endured a lot of misery and yet promises to keep fighting, because “a change is gonna come”. The song opens with, “I was born by the river in a little tent/ And just like the river I’ve been running ever since”. This is a start of the timeline of events, as well as a visual context to the begging of his troubles. Similarly, the next few verses also describe instances of Cooke’s experiences of disparity. For instance, he writes, “I go to the movie/ And I go down town/ somebody keep telling me don’t hang around...” In the end, he summarizes, “There were times when I thought I couldn’t last for long/ But now I think I’m able to carry on.” Despite all the pain and the suffering, Cooke continues to carry on because he believes “a change is gonna come”.